Same-Same but Different: A Love Letter to Kinship

This is the most personal work I’ve ever done. Same-Same but Different is a zine and research project that merges art, advocacy, and public policy analysis to uplift disabled individuals and their families.

I spent two years developing it, drawing from my own experience as a sibling navigating the complexity of caregiving into adulthood. What began as a personal reflection evolved into a public offering. All I hoped was to support and connect people navigating the realities of being multicultural, affected by disability, and caring for the longest relationship in their life (besides the one with themselves): their sibling.

The urgency behind this work intensified during the 2020 pandemic. As our networks and support systems collapsed, many of us were forced to confront just how fragile these structures had always been. At the time, my youngest brother (a young man with high-support needs due to multiple disabilities) had just turned 22. This milestone meant he aged out of all school-supported services. What should have been a smooth transition became a crisis, inflamed by the chaos of COVID-19. Searching for answers, I joined Mass Families, a grassroots coalition supporting disability advocacy. That work led me to the Allen C. Crocker Family Fellowship, a program honoring a visionary pediatrician dedicated to advancing disability rights.

What emerged was a tribute to the layered bond between siblings and the weight, love, and resilience that relationship can carry. It is also a document of mutual care and the ways we keep each other going. I am deeply grateful to the artists and families who shared their stories and helped shape this project into something larger than us. Special thanks to the Institute for Community Inclusion, the E.K. Shriver Center at UMass Boston, the Disability Law Center, the Massachusetts Developmental Disabilities Council, MassFamilies, and the Arc of Massachusetts.

The goal from the start was to spark more questions, more conversations, and more support for those giving and receiving care. Within a year of self-publishing, Same-Same but Different was added to the National Library of Congress, with over 500 copies distributed across the United States and Europe. It debuted at Boston Design Week in 2023 with four original artworks, which are now on display at the Institute for Community Inclusion at UMass Boston. The project also became part of statewide advocacy efforts. Alongside community leaders, it helped push for expanded disability support, contributing to a $200 million allocation for Adult Day Habs and a 14% increase in Department of Developmental Services funding in Governor Healey’s state budget.

This work began at home, but its impact lives in community. May those caring and being cared for feel seen, supported, and strengthened. And may we all keep asking: how do we truly restitch the fabric of care in our world?